Christmas in the house

Check out the wallpaper I have on my computer desktop now...


This is the first time we put up a Christmas tree in our home. Keoni's already old enough not to go apple-picking on it, while Ninja will but at least he already understands that the decor isn't candy.

It was a family affair-- from inserting the branches into the trunk, to putting up the ornaments (that was when Ninja realized they weren't candy), finding Christmas lights and more ornaments, to lighting up the tree. Jazz turned off the living room lights and there it was-- the magic glowing in our little boys' eyes.

On the wallpaper, clockwise from top right corner: Aladdin's Genie; Jazz places a Christmas ball on the tree; Donald Duck joins the fun; a surreal shot of the Christmas tree from behind our frosted glass door; Goofy also hangs out with the gang; and Keoni puts out a huge smile.

Love Team

Is the term "love team" uniquely Pinoy?

Just like "carnap", "boldstar", "rubber shoes", "bananacue", "camotecue", "resbak", "adidas" (for the chicken feet delicacy)... ano pa ba meron dyan?

In one of his inspired moments, my husband wrote a song about Filipino showbiz love teams and called it, what else, "Love Team". When I first heard and read the lyrics, I couldn't help but laugh out loud because the word "sawi" immediately came to mind and images of sawi friends popped into my head.

Ultimately, it's a love song at its finest--bittersweet, aching, heart-wrenching, hopeful.

Here's my favorite part from the song:

Sana huwag mo 'kong sisihin

'Di ko kayang pigilin

Sabi mo na mahal mo 'ko

pero di naman seryoso

Which reminds me of a Rex Navarrete quip: "And then she says this one word that ends it all. What is that word? (dramatic pause) KUYA!"

Masakit man pero totoo, what is it about unreciprocated love and broken heartedness that makes the best songs? Bakit tuwang tuwa tayo sa malungkot? Is it the drama kings and queens inside us all (admit it, madrama ka rin) that makes us want to emote and dream and rant and still struggle after that flippant mocker called Love?

Cristina Pantoja Hidalgo said (or rather, wrote) it best:

Perhaps it was the intensity of my own feelings. When we want something badly enough, do we not convince ourselves that it is meant for us? When we fall in love, do we not think it inevitable that the other person must return the feeling?